The World Is Not As It Seems
by Fiery Charizard
Summary: Walking along route 32, Ash encounters an Unown, nothing appears to happens but something does...
1. Default Chapter

Okay um, this fic came into my head and I don't know whether it'll be like as much as my others, It's set before the 3rd Movie. Please don't judge this fic by it's first chapter, as the title says, the world is not as it seems...  
  
  
  
The World is not as it Seems.  
  
The sunlight danced playfully on Ash's face as he walked alongside Misty on Route 32, near the Ruins Of Alph. Pikachu sat on his backpack watching the path behind them as it slithered away like an Ekans. Brock walked slightly behind them studying the map carefully. So carefully he almost tripped over a large rock.  
"Brock what are you doing? Didn't you see that rock?" Ash said looking back at his friend.  
"No I didn't see the rock, I was actually looking at the map" Brock snapped.  
"Ok Brock, I was only asking, no need to bite my head off" Ash said defensively. Brock glared at the map again. Ash looked to Misty for help. She shrugged.  
"What's the matter Brock? You seem a bit moody today" she enquired.  
"Nothing ok? I wish you'd just get off my case" Brock snapped again. Ash turned on him.  
"Look, if you don't want to say what your problem is then that's fine, just don't take it out on us" Ash said angrily.  
"I'm sorry Ash, but this routes makin me a little edgy and angry" Brock explained. Ash looked puzzled.   
What's there to be edgy about? It's only a route" Ash insisted.  
"I dunno, it's just...I'm getting this really weird feelin about it" Brock mumbled looking down at the ground again. He didn't know what it was, but something was making him uneasy. Something was going to happen.  
  
"Hey Brock I found a stream" Ash shouted, heading back to him and Misty. They had decided to stop for lunch since it was getting too hot to walk (and Ash was hungry).  
"Great, we'll have lunch there" Brock shouted back, walking towards Ash and the stream. Misty followed him. He seemed to have calmed down since their argument that morning. When they reached Ash, Misty found Pikachu playing in the water. Togepi wiggled in her arms, wanting to join it's Uncle Pikachu. She set the small Pokemon down and it ran off to the water edge, where Pikachu helped it in.   
"Isn't this near the Ruins Of Alph Brock?" Misty asked.  
"Yeah, it's a little west of here" he answered, whilst stirring the contents of his saucepan. Ash came back up from the stream, wiping his face on a towel. As he put the towel down, something appeared in front of him. At first he didn't see what it was, and he pulled out Dexter to see what it was.  
  
Unown, `P` shape. This Pokemon is shaped like letters of the alphabet. Other Information about this Pokemon is limited.  
  
"Information limited? It must be really rare... I wanna catch it!" Ash muttered to himself.  
"Ash are you sure you should?" Misty asked.  
"Why not? It's still a Pokemon" he answered shrugging. He started to pull out a Poke Ball, when the Unown started an attack, not at any Pokemon, but directly at Ash.   
"What the-?" Ash started, but didn't finish. Though he felt nothing, he was starting to glow a dull orange.  
"Ash what's happening to you?" Misty cried looking in horror as he glowed brighter. All Ash did was shake his head. He still felt nothing unusual. The Unown stopped it's attack and disappeared in the blink of an eye. Ash slowly stopped glowing and went back to his normal colour.  
"What was that all about?" he said in disbelief.   
"If we could tell you then we would" Brock murmured, gazing at the space where the Unown had disappeared into.  
"What ever it was, it was definitely strange" Misty stated. Ash shrugged.  
"I didn't feel any different than I normally do, to be honest I doubt that was a registered attack" Ash insisted. He pulled out Dexter again and looked up the   
Unown's attacks.  
  
Unown listed attacks: Hidden Power. Other attacks may be used but are not known.  
  
"See? Hidden Power can't do that, so it has to be another type of attack that only it knows" he said putting his Pokedex back in his pocket.  
"Well what ever it did, you don't seem to have changed so it can't be that important" Misty said. They headed back to their mini camp and had lunch in peace, though Ash still wondered what that `P` Unown had done.  
  
Later that day , around 8:00pm they decided to stop for the night. Ash laid out his sleeping bag near to Misty's against a fallen log. Brock was busy lighting a fire and Misty was feeding Togepi some of Brock's Poke chow. All were unaware of the things that hid in the darkness.  
  
"Ash what are you doing?" Brock asked as he watched Ash call Noctowl out of it's Poke Ball. He turned and smiled.  
"I was just getting Noctowl to go and find the nearest Pokemon Centre" he explained.   
"But we know where it is" Brock said still puzzled.  
"I know, but we don't know how long it's gonna take us to get there do we?" Ash answered as his Pokemon flew off into the dark night sky. Brock shrugged and climbed into his sleeping bag. Ash and Misty were about to follow suit, when something moved out of the darkness towards them. Though Misty didn't recognise him, she knew there was something evil about to happen involving him. Ash stepped towards him.  
"Who are you? What do you want here?" Ash asked. The man from the shadows said nothing but pulled out a pistol from his pocket. He aimed it at Misty and said, "from an old friend." His finger pressed the trigger, aiming the bullet straight for her heart. But just as he pulled the trigger and released the bullet, Ash jumped in front of Misty shielding her, taking the bullet straight into his own heart. He fell to the ground.  
"Ash! Nooooooo!" Misty's scream was that of a wounded animal. She knelt down beside him resting his head on her lap. "No Ash please no. please be ok please" she murmured, tears rolling down her cheeks. But her pleas fell upon ears that heard nothing, her tears fell onto a lifeless face. Her lover was dead.  
  
I'm sorry people, please don't flame me for this. This story should not be judged until you've read the next chapter, so please review and understand that I don't hate Ash, far, far from it. I say it again, things are not as they seem, so wait for the next chapter and you should be pleasantly surprised. I post it very soon. 


	2. Til Life Do Us Part

Hope everyone will like this next chapter. I'm making this up as I go along (my other chapters are plan before hand), so I dunno how long it'll be. S'pose I should get on with it before I bore everyone to death! I also forgot to say at the beginning of the first chapter that Ash and Misty are 17 and Brock is 18 (and Ash is a lot taller now than before).  
  
Til Life Do us Part.  
  
"Misty come away please, c'mon Mist" Brock said pacing the ground, tears falling down his face in two steady streams. He had called an ambulance, hoping that the would be quick enough to revive Ash. Misty wouldn't let go of him. She sat with his head resting on her lap. Far away, a siren could be heard in the distance. "That'll be the ambulance" Brock mumbled to himself and he looked in the sound's direction. Noctowl had returned earlier and Brock had recalled her to her Poke Ball.   
  
Two minutes later the ambulance pulled up beside them. The Paramedics ran out and bent beside Ash.  
"How long has he been like this?" one of them asked Misty. She shook her head dumbly.  
"About 15-20 minutes" Brock answered watching them.   
"Ok, we have to get him to the hospital, but first we have to see if we can resuscitate him here" the other said urgently. He went back to the ambulance and pulled out his equipment. Misty had to move away. The Paramedics started.  
  
After trying for 15 minutes they finally gave up. One turned to Misty.  
"I'm sorry miss, but his wound went straight through his heart, we can't revive him" he said sadly.  
"But you have to keep trying, you have to! I love him, not anyone else, he can't be dead, he just can't" she cried hysterically. Brock walked over to her and hugged her. She turned and buried her head in his shoulder. Pikachu stood beside Ash's head, crying as when he had turned to stone.  
"Pikapi" he cried, knowing that nothing he could do would bring back his trainer.   
"I'm sorry but he hasn't been breathing for half an hour, and he was shot straight in the heart," the other Paramedic explained as he came over, "we've tried everything."  
"What's gonna happen now?" Brock asked.  
"We'll take him to the hospital, his family will have to be contacted, and we'll see about getting your families in too" one said gazing sadly over at Ash's limp form. The two men walked to theirs ambulance and pulled out a stretcher. Carefully they picked Ash up and placed him on it. Misty pulled away from Brock and followed them into the van. Her eyes were red and bloated, her cheeks flushed and crimson. She sat next to Ash, new tears forming at the sight of him. Brock climbed in beside.  
"It'll be ok Misty" he tried to comforted her.  
"But it won't Brock, Ash is dead and it's all my fault" she shouted sorrowfully. Brock said nothing in return. He knew his words were false, and nothing could change them to be right. The ambulance moved off.  
  
They had been travelling in silence for a while, Misty, Brock and one Paramedic in the back, the other in the front driving. Misty sat by his head, staring at his lifeless face. She had been staring for so long, that she thought she saw his lips part slightly. She shook her head and looked again. His chest moved up slowly. This time she knew she hadn't imagined it.  
"Brock look he's alive! Ash is alive!" she shouted. Brock gave her a strange and worried look.  
"Misty he isn't, he hasn't for 45 minutes, he can't be alive" the Paramedic said.  
"His is. Watch him, I saw his mouth and chest move" she insisted. Brock and the Paramedic both looked. To their amazement, Ash's chest moved up fully, and when it deflated he coughed violently.  
"Oh my god! This kid's alive!" the Paramedic shouted standing up and checking Ash's pulse.   
"Ash? Can you here me? Ash!" Misty called urgently. He opened his eyes and smiled faintly up at her.  
"Hey Mist" he croaked.  
"You're alive! Oh Ash I thought I'd lost you" she said lovingly.   
"I thought I did lose me, in fact I'm pretty sure I did" he just about managed a whisper. Misty smiled.  
"Your ok and that's all the matters- to me" she added. The Paramedic came back into the back and lifted up Ash's shirt to see his wound. They all watched. The injury was deep, but a yellow, almost electrical, light danced across it. As it did the hole slowly shrank until it was completely gone.  
"Well that's new" Ash muttered.  
"I've never seen anything like this! You have been dead for 45 minutes, with a fatal wound to your heart, and you start breathing and then the hole closes over by it's self. It's unbelievable" the man exclaimed. The ambulance stopped and the other Paramedic walked in.  
"Do you feel any pain or aches?" he asked. Ash shook his head.  
"I feel better than I ever have done" he answered sitting up on the stretcher. He then swung his legs round and stood slowly. "See? Nothing hurts and I feel fine" he remarked. Misty stood up beside him.  
"Do you mind if we go outside for a moment?" she asked the Paramedic.  
"No, as long as you feel ok Ash" he shrugged. Misty pushed the door open and took Ash's hand. They went outside.   
"Why are we out here Misty?" he asked her. She took a deep breath.  
"I've wanted to tell you something for a long time Ash..." she started but he interrupted.  
"Can it wait? It's just that I wanted to tell you something too" he said. She sighed but nodded, telling him to go first. "I love you Misty, I don't know how long for, I just have since before I can remember. Being dead just now, I saw heaven's gates, but it was a heaven that I didn't want to go to. You weren't there, and Heaven to me, would only be heaven if you were there," he explained, "it's lucky that when I got to the gates I was told I wasn't suppose to go there yet..." but before he could say any more, Misty wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. He was shocked by the sensation but quickly kissed back. Misty was the one to pull back.  
"That was what I wanted to tell you, I've loved you since the day you trashed my bike" she explained gazing into his eyes. He kissed her again. "I still haven't forgotten that" she smiled as they pulled away.  
"We should really go back in the ambulance" Ash said, his lips centimetres from hers. She smiled again.  
"But we don't want to" she whispered as her lips met his. Brock came outside to see what they were doing as they had been outside for 10 minutes. When he saw them, he cleared his throat loudly. Ash pulled away and looked sheepishly at him.  
"We're comin" he insisted. He walked hand in hand with Misty back to the van. "Do we have to go back to the hospital?" he asked as they climbed in.  
"Well, you should really..." one started.  
"But I feel fine now" he insisted again. The other Paramedic hesitated.  
"I suppose if you really feel ok then you don't have to..." he mumbled.  
"Great! Let's go Pikachu!" Ash shouted happily.  
"Pika Pika! Pi Pikachu!" his Pokemon also shouted.  
"Thanks for everything and tell the people at the hospital that I'm ok now and please don't say anything about me healing again" Ash asked them.  
"We'll just say that you had a fairly bad cut on your arm and that we sorted it out" they smiled.   
"Thanks" Misty shouted waving as they drove off. She sighed and turned to Ash.  
"We should find somewhere to camp for the night" Brock suggested, "At least we're nearer to the next Pokemon Centre." He turned to see Ash and Misty kissing again. "S'cuse me but hope you don't plan on doing that all the time now that you two have finally got together. Wait a minute, who won the bet then?" he said. Misty pulled away and looked at him, as did Ash.  
"What bet?" they chorused.  
"Well we had a bet to see how long it would take you two to get together" Brock explained narrowly avoiding Misty's infamous mallet.  
"Who exactly is "we"?" Ash asked. Brock stood and thought for a moment.  
"Well, there was me, Duplica, Richie, Lisa, Melody, Tracey, a lot of the Nurse Joys and Officer Jennys, Misty's sisters, the President of the Pokemon League, Professor Oak...um Gary" he listed, but was interrupted.  
"Gary! He's betting on us too? I seriously hope he didn't win" Ash said angrily.  
"I think Melody won, though I'm not 100% sure" Brock told him. Misty sighed and pulled out her sleeping bag, which the Paramedic had packed for her. Brock left off the conversation and built a fire while Ash also pulled out his sleeping bag. He placed it near to Misty's. Pikachu sat on his shoulder.  
"You didn't bet did you Pikachu?" Ash asked quietly. Pikachu hesitated.  
"Pi" he nodded.  
"You did too? How much?" Ash asked again.  
"Pi Pichu Pika" Pikachu answered quickly. Ash understood.  
"$20?! Oh man" he exclaimed. Brock was climbing into his sleeping bag. Misty did too. Ash got in his and Pikachu lay in beside him.  
"G'night Brock, G'night Ash" Misty said turning to face Ash.  
"G'night Misty, night Ash" Brock called.  
"Night Brock" he said then turned to Misty, "night Mist." He pulled his hand out of his sleeping bag, as did Misty, and they locked fingers for a few seconds then they pulled away. Misty fell asleep happy that Ash was ok. Ash lay and thought for a while. Hoe did I survive being shot straight in the heart and then stay dead for 45 minutes only to come alive again? This is way too weird, he thought. Little did he know that most of his questions would be answered in the morning.  
  
Ash woke to the smell of breakfast being cooked. He yawned and sat up, remembering the events of the previous night. Looking over at Misty, his thoughts ran wild. She looks so beautiful when she's asleep... He then went back to reality. Climbing out of his sleeping bag he gave Pikachu a quick shake and walked over to where Brock was cooking their breakfast.  
"Morning Ash, How're you feelin?" Brock asked cheerfully.  
"Better than ever thanks" Ash answered smiling. Brock gave him a bowl of his homemade soup. Misty woke and joined them. Ash had just finished his second bowl, when a strange feelin came over him. He sat perfectly still, he eyes darting from side to side.  
"What's the matter Ash? Is something wrong?" Misty asked him, see his strange behaviour.  
"I dunno. I just had a really strange feeling pass over me" he explained.  
"The feeling you felt was the presence of your own kind approaching you" a voice explained from behind him. Ash stood and turned.  
"Who are you? Show yourself!" he shouted in the direction of the voice. A tall blonde haired man appeared. His hair was tied back in a loose ponytail and he was wearing a long black coat.  
"I am Jacob Macloud. You can call me Jacob or Mac. I can provide you with some of the answers you are looking for" the stranger introduced himself.  
"What do you mean "the answers that I'm looking for?" what if I'm not looking for any?" Ash asked puzzled.  
"The answers that tell you why you didn't stay dead last night and why you healed so fast. As to why you felt me come" Jacob explained coolly.  
"Huh? How do you know all that?" Ash was now extremely confused.  
"Because I am like you," Jacob started, "I think we should sit down to talk about this." Ash sat back down and Jacob sat opposite him.  
"By the way, my name's Ash, this is Brock and this is Misty. When you came you said the "presence of my own kind". What did you mean?" Ash asked.  
"Because you are no longer a normal human. It's easier if I explain basics first. For centuries, `P` Unowns have used a special attack on people. I too had this attack used on me, the same as you Ash" he explained, "so when ever someone is hit by this attack they become immortal."  
"What?! Immortal!" Ash exclaimed, "do you honestly mean to say that I can't die?" Jacob nodded. "I hope you don't seriously expect me to believe that do you?" Ash said raising an eyebrow. What happened next was totally unexpected. With lightning reflexes, Jacob unsheathed a hidden sword and stabbed Ash in the stomach with it. Ash looked at him with horror and surprised. Jacob withdrew his sword and wiped the crimson stain from the blade. Misty looked in horror as Ash brought his hand away from his stomach to reveal a flow of blood. He gasped in agony as the lightning again appeared and miraculously healed the gaping hole. He glared angrily at Jacob. "What the hell was that for?" he asked through ragged breath.  
"You didn't believe me when I said you were immortal and I just proved that you are, as any mortal would died from that kind of wound. You cannot die by being shot or stabbed or anything like that. There is only one way you can be killed, and that is by someone taking off your head" he explained.  
"Oh great, the only way I can die is by some stranger comin along and choppin my head off. Perfect, absolutely flippin perfect" Ash said sarcastically still rubbing his stomach where the sword had entered.  
"You must understand that this is very serious and you can't become mortal again. There are other immortals besides you and me, some are good some are evil. When an immortal kills another immortal they receive the `Quickenning`, which is the other immortal's knowledge and power" Jacob went on to say. Brock put his hand up.  
"Question. How old are you, cos you don't look that all that old to me" he asked. Jacob smiled.  
"I'm 500 years old" he answered.  
"Then you definitely look younger than you are" Misty commented.   
"It's because though we get older, our looks stay the same" Jacob smiled again.   
"Why do you carry a sword with you?" Ash enquired.  
"It's the main weapon that we use against each other" Jacob answered.  
Ash looked at him. Their gazes met. Through the conversation, Misty's hand had slipped into Ash's. "Now that you are one of us Ash and I have explained to you about us, will you let me train you?" Jacob asked. Ash looked at Misty. She smiled. He then looked down at Pikachu, then to Brock.   
"If it'll stop me from getting my head chopped off then why not?" he answered. Jacob stood smiling.   
"Excellent. We can go to my cabin, it isn't far" he said, as Ash and the others stood.  
"Are we allowed to come?" Misty asked, scared that he would say they weren't.  
"Of cause you can. You can stay with me at my cabin, there's plenty of room" he smiled down at her.   
"Are you a Pokemon trainer, Mac?" Ash asked as they walked along.  
"Yes I am. I was when I found the Unown and I have been ever since" he replied.  
"Isn't it hard though when they die?" Ash asked again. Jacob nodded.  
"Believe me kid, it doesn't get any easier" he murmured.  
"But what about people?" Ash enquired further. Jacob stopped smiling and turned his gaze down to the ground.  
"I'll tell you about it all at another point in time" he murmured.  
"Seems I've got plenty of that" Ash muttered. He looked at Misty. She turned her eyes up to meet his, she smiled slightly. He smiled back. Their fingers interlocked, but then Misty almost dropped Togepi, so she had to let go of his hand to steady the small egg. Pikachu sighed on Ash's shoulder. Did this mean the end of their Pokemon journey for good? What was going to happen to Pikapi? Pikachu knew that this could stop Pikapi from training his Pokemon. But would he accept not being able to train them? Pikachu came out of his thoughts when Ash stopped.  
"We're here" Jacob announced.  
  
There, told you that you would get a happy thing in this chapter (obviously not the Ash Haters, though how anyone could hate him I don't know). Hopefully now you aren't angry at me Digi Destined of Courage and everyone else who was! Anyways please review and tell me if you were happy or not :). 


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